GrimPrecise
I'll tell you why so serious
Odelecol
Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.
Derry Herrera
Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.
Rainey Dawn
A childhood trauma story about a woman who's parents died when she was very young and she was sent to an orphanage where she lived for years. Grown up, she living on a farm with her haunted memories and is a very devout Christian. News of a killer in town breaks out, a killer who's weapon of choice is scissors. The woman begins to think her uncle is to blame but is he? The question is: Who is the killer? A pretty good psychological thriller. I guessed right off the bat who the killer was but I was second guessing myself the whole film and I won't tell you who - you will have to watch and find out for yourself who the scissor killer is! Not a lot of blood and gore in this film - just a decent psychological horror-thriller to keep fans of the genre entertained.8/10
bkoganbing
Although May Britt, Cameron Mitchell, and Aldo Ray have all seen better days before doing Haunts, the film was a bit better than I was expecting.Haunts has May cast as a sexually repressed farm girl who has a lot of old memories revived when some women start being raped and killed in her vicinity. Cameron Mitchell is her uncle who has come to stay with her and Aldo Ray is the sheriff investigating the killings.No unearthly type demons or creatures are doing these things, they're just the product of some sexually frustrated men. For a while it's starting to look like everybody in this vicinity has some issues.The ending of Haunts is rather offbeat and I will add my voice to those who say it is like a Stephen King novel. Let's say the reason for May's problems and the killer are not one and the same.
Scarecrow-88
Herb Freed(Graduation Day;Beyond Evil)directs this psychological melodrama(..with elements of a slasher) regarding the effects on a small town, and especially troubled Ingrid(May Britt), as a sexual predator stalks vulnerable women at night with a pair of scissors after raping them. Ingrid is *haunted* by memories from childhood regarding finding her mother dead in a bathtub and possible sexual abuse at the hands of "reliable" Uncle Carl(Cameron Mitchell, whose role is minor until the enigmatic ending where he supposedly returns to Ingrid's home where memories of his own resurface after being away for a while). It seems that Ingrid is being stalked by the town stud, Frankie(William Gray Espy), who even rapes her in her own bedroom, holding scissors to her throat. Ingrid is a deeply devout Catholic who is suffering hallucinations thanks to her past(..blood is a constant)and seems incredibly uncomfortable around men. Husky voiced, alcoholic sheriff(Aldo Ray)is truly puzzled about the attacks plaguing his once quiet, sleepy little town, and is quite concerned for his citizens, innocent women who might venture out at night alone. Trying to sober up, the sheriff will attempt to find the killer, keeping his deputies on alert, watching the country roads and neighborhood streets at night, hoping to catch him in the act. Meanwhile, Ingrid battles with her conscience and religious convictions after being raped. The film also subtly hints at the idea that her mysterious Uncle Carl might be the one responsible for the attacks. Also, a mannerly, soft-spoken stranger from Baltimore, Bill Spry(Robert Hippard)enters town hoping to date Ingrid, who seems little interested in making relations with any man.Director Freed and collaborative writer Anne Marisse craft a very tricky tale here which takes it's time building the attacks around Ingrid's story. The attacks themselves really are the Macguffen as the film centers around Ingrid, and serve to actually heighten her trauma. Through the surrounding attacks in town, Ingrid, slightly stable on a slender thread, goes off the deep end with the scissor-murders influencing her hostile fantasies. The film seems to have three endings. The police cornering the sexual sadist in a saw mill. Ingrid's confrontation with Frankie as a bound Carl tries to free himself. And, Ingrid's fate and the reactions from the sheriff and Carl relating the truth to the viewer. Freed doesn't hurry himself and the film takes it's time developing so it might can become tedious for some viewers(..such as choir practice and a bar conversation between Spry and a local gal-pal of Ingrid's who is a potential victim). I think one might also find the last thirty minutes tiresome due to the complexities of Ingrid and what is real and imagined. I found it worthwhile and thought Britt's performance was a stunner. The score from Pino Donaggio really adds quality to the tragedy ever so present throughout the film. Freed does an exceptional job incorporating Ingrid's memories within her life at the present, with Donaggio's somber music adding the right touch at reflecting her deteriorating mental state.
Coventry
Director Herb Freed isn't exactly celebrated for his contributions to horror cinema, but personally I can't say he let me down already. "Beyond Evil" (starring John Saxon!) is a decent haunted house chiller and "Graduation Day" is an over-the-top insane & gory 80's slasher flick. "Haunts" is a whole lot less exciting than the two aforementioned titles, but Freed also clearly didn't want this film to be a gross and outrageous horror smut fest. Wrongfully promoted as a psycho-killer-on-the-loose flick, "Haunts" is actually a lot more effective as a psychological portrait about a dame in distress. Ingrid (May Britt) is a deeply religious farmer woman living on her own and suffering from a frigid sexuality as well as fear of male commitment, inflicted by some obscure childhood traumas. When several young women are found brutally murdered in the little town, Ingrid loses her sanity and starts to spot perverted murderers everywhere. Some other reviewers already made the comparison between "Haunts" and Roman "Repulsion", which is a righteous one, albeit Polanski's classic is naturally a lot more intense and frightening. Still, this is an atmospheric low-budget thriller with slow-breeding suspense and a handful of memorable moments. The scene where Ingrid discovers the corpse of her murdered woman amidst her farm animals, for example, is pretty damn creepy! The picture quality is truly poor and urgently needs restoration, but this shouldn't keep admirers of obscure 70's gems from purchasing a copy of this film. The cast features some familiar names, like Cameron Mitchell as Ingrid's suspicious uncle and Aldo Ray as the town's fatigue Sheriff. Decent thriller, as long as you don't anticipate wild gore or gratuitous sleaze.
